BRIDGE construction companies have shown a keen interest in the Kapooka project, with 11 of them vying for one of the biggest road projects the region has seen.
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Tenders for the replacement of the 134-year-old bridge over the Sydney-Melbourne railway line closed on June 11.
A spokeswoman for Roads and Maritime said the tenders for the four-lane road-over-rail bridge were now being evaluated.
An announcement on the winning bid could be several weeks away.
"Preliminary work for the bridge upgrade, including surveying, fencing and adjustment of utilities is under way, with major work expected to start in spring," the spokeswoman said.
The number of tenders delighted the member for Wagga, Daryl Maguire.
"It just goes to show there is keen interest in it," Mr Maguire said.
"It will take them time to work through the tenders."
The federal and state governments have each committed $19.5 million to replace the bridge and realign 2.8 kilometres of the Olympic Highway north and south of the structure.
The new Kapooka bridge, about 7.5km south of Wagga, will be 99 metres long.
The price tag puts it behind only the Gobbagombalin Bridge in terms of expenditure on a bridge in Wagga.
A construction time frame of 18 months would mean the bridge and new roadway would be open to traffic some time between March and June, 2016.
The current bridge, made of bricks, has been the scene of scores of crashes over the years.
While driver behaviour has been blamed for some of the crashes, sharp turns at both ends of the bridge have caught some drivers out.
The low height of the bridge also restricts the type of freight trains that can use the rail line.